The challenges ahead for the new DPS

Logan, 10, in the fifth grade works on math homework. In the background is his dad, Ernest Robinson, 51, as he helps his son Connor, 12, in the seventh grade, search the internet for information on Greece for a report as part of his homework at their home in Southfield.(Photo: Jessica J. Trevino, Detroit Free Press)Buy Photo

If lawmakers endorse Gov. Rick Snyder’s costly plan to eliminate much of Detroit Public Schools’ debt and create a new district to educate students, it’ll be a fresh start for a school system decimated by years of crushing debt.

But the $715-million question is this: Will the plan to splinter DPS into two resolve the district’s financial problems for the long haul? And will it address the district’s dismal achievement?

“It will definitely make things better in the short term,” said Mike Griffith, school finance strategist for the Denver-based Education Commission of the States, a nonpartisan education policy organization. “But unless they stop the hemorrhaging of kids, they’re going to be back in the same situation. That might not be in a year or two — it might be five to 10 years.”

A key part of proposed legislation being discussed for DPS is the dividing of the district into two.

The old district would use millage revenue to pay off much of the existing $515 million in operating debt and $200 million in start-up costs for the new district. That new district would educate students, with the state kicking in more than $71 million annually over 10 years for per-pupil funding.

John Walsh, Snyder’s chief strategist, said enrollment losses in recent years have been much smaller than they were in the years when DPS was losing 10,000 students a year. And the new district, he said, will benefit from an additional $1,100 per pupil that now is going toward paying off debt. Meanwhile, the $200 million in start-up costs will allow for an easier transition — including a cushion in case the district runs into financial problems early on, he said.

“We think (the new DPS) has a chance to be a very competitive force in Detroit,” Walsh said.

But others say that even small enrollment losses could lead DPS back down the path of financial ruin, particularly if there is no mechanism in place to slow the growth of new charter schools and the expansion of existing charters, which are contributing to the district's enrollment declines by siphoning off students.

David Arsen, a professor of education policy at Michigan State University, said smaller enrollment declines won't necessarily be easier to deal with, noting that when enrollment drops, revenues drop faster than costs. At the same time, Arsen said, the proportion of high-cost students — such as those with special-education needs — increases because those students are less likely to leave for charters.

The plan to rescue DPS comes at a crucial time. The district has been under state-appointed emergency management since 2009, yet its debt has continued to rise. Last week, lawmakers in the House approved $50 million in emergency funds to help the district, which is expected to run out of money in early April.

Beyond financial issues, the overarching issue for the district is whether it can make the dramatic changes needed to improve academics — an issue that none of the bills moving in the Legislature addresses. Both Snyder and Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan have said raising achievement in the district is key to Detroit’s future as the city comes out of the largest municipal bankruptcy in history.

The new district "doesn't fix academics," said Tonya Allen, president and CEO of the Skillman Foundation, a nonprofit that works to improve schools and neighborhoods in the city. "In order for it to be academically sustainable, it’s going to have to do many of the same things the old district would need to do."

Test scores illustrate why. In 2013, on the now-retired MEAP exam, only 40% of elementary and middle school students were proficient in reading and 14.4% were proficient in math. On the new, more rigorous state exam that replaced the MEAP in 2015, only 3.3% of students were proficient across all subjects and grades tested, according to state data.

The district's graduation rate, 77%, is at the highest level in recent history. But that's underscored by the fact that only 3% of the district's students are considered college-ready, based on how they scored on the ACT in 2015. And 53% of the district's 2014 graduates who enrolled in college needed remedial coursework, according to the most recent data compiled.

The district also may have to address issues repeatedly raised by the unions — among them large class sizes, restoring programs that have been cut and repaying teachers for money they loaned the district. There have been no across-the-board raises for teachers in about five years.

Much of DPS’s future will depend on the new district’s ability to manage these costs and create a learning environment that will improve academic achievement and draw parents to the district.

Buy Photo

Logan, 10, in the fifth grade works on math homework. In the background is his dad, Ernest Robinson, 51, as he helps his son Connor, 12, in the seventh grade, search the internet for information on Greece for a report as part of his homework at their home in Southfield.(Photo: Jessica J. Trevino, Detroit Free Press)

DPS parent Ernest Robinson said he’s hopeful that the district will bounce back.

“Do I think it will happen? Yes, because I’m an optimist,” Robinson said. “But have I seen any signs of it beginning to happen? No. I’ve seen a lot of finger-pointing and lot of frustration from everyone. It has to start at the local level.”

Enrollment stability

Some education experts and community leaders say the new DPS will only be sustainable if its enrollment is stable, if there is a mechanism to control the opening and closing of schools in the city and if the city doesn't see substantial growth of charter schools.

The district's fall enrollment was 46,912 students, according to state data. But that’s a far cry from the 2002-03 school year, when 156,182 students were enrolled. In the 14 years since, DPS has seen some dramatic declines, losing 10,000 or more students in six of those years. But in recent years, the losses have slowed: Enrollment was at 47,959 in 2014-15, 49,870 in 2013-14 and 50,172 in 2012-13.

State officials are banking on that recent history going forward.

“They’re still losing a small number of students, but it’s become much more manageable,” Walsh said.

Even as DPS has seen big losses, charter schools have flourished, despite performing only slightly better overall than DPS. More than half of the school-age children in Detroit attend charters in the city or in surrounding suburbs. And while the number of new charters opening in the city has slowed, nothing has stopped existing charters from expanding and taking in more students. It is their growth that has left DPS teetering.

"If you can’t solve the underlying problems that caused (the deficit) in the first place, you’re inviting the recurrence of the deficit," Arsen said.

Some say even small enrollment declines will hurt. Michigan’s school funding system is based solely on enrollment, and each student lost costs DPS $7,434.

"If you're losing 3% each year, that means you've got to consistently cut 3% of your costs. Which means you're going to have to cut teachers and services," Griffith said.

Snyder's proposal for fixing Detroit schools has called for the creation of a Detroit Education Commission that would have control over the openings and closings of schools — both charters and traditional public schools. But so far, lawmakers have wrangled over whether it should be part of the legislative package.

Allen said the commission is vital to the stability of schools in Detroit, both DPS schools and charter schools.

"The challenge in Detroit is the ecosystem is out of balance," said Allen, one of the cochairs of the Coalition for the Future of Detroit Schoolchildren, which hasstudied fixes for Detroit's financial problems. "We have far too much supply without demand. And there's no coordination or ability to rightsize the entire environment."

Walsh said the education commission may end up in the final draft of the legislation, but in a limited form.

Charter advocates such as Gary Naeyaert are opposed to the notion of a DEC. It adds unnecessary bureaucracy, puts too much power in the hands of Duggan and is hostile to the principle of parental choice, Naeyaert said.

He said he has seen language that suggests a key DEC role would be to increase enrollment in district schools.

"What does that mean? You have to limit choice and keep parents from choosing charters," Naeyaert said.

Academic achievement

The launch of the new DPS will give the district something it has never had — an opportunity to reinvent itself. But some worry that the current legislation doesn't address academic achievement.

That, they say, should be at the heart of the district's transformation efforts. Without it, "I would fear more of what we've experienced over the past few decades," said Kendra Hearn, associate professor of teacher education at the University of Michigan.

Tim Knowles, chairman of the Urban Education Institute at the University of Chicago, said there are four things that need to happen: A focus on strong leadership; a focus on the essentials needed to transform the entire system, such as the quality of instruction, parent and community engagement and building a college-going culture starting in kindergarten; less focus on standardized tests and more on things proven to matter and finally, establishing DPS as an incubator for innovation, getting teachers, principals and the community involved in efforts to redefine schooling.

"That's what I would do if I was handed the keys to this new district," he said. "I would want to position it differently — so it's not just another effort at fixing up the system in the conventional way."

Allen said the new DPS needs to ensure students who are struggling with a specific subject are given substantially more instruction in those subjects. The district also needs to develop a stronger curriculum, one that doesn't ignore the social and cultural needs of students. That means paying attention to the arts and sports in addition to the core subject areas.

"The best way for the district to stabilize its enrollment is to provide a strong academic product," Allen said. "They have to be willing to compete."

Sen. Goeff Hansen, R-Hart, sponsor of the Senate DPS bills, acknowledged that his legislation doesn't include a plan to improve academics. But, he said, "we’re not stopping after this — this is just the emergency part of it, to stabilize the district.”

Walsh said launching a new district with no debt should give the new system an opportunity to succeed. An added benefit, he said: State law prevents the State School Reform Office from intervening in failing schools in districts controlled by an emergency manager, but with the new DPS expected to shed that position, it will "help bring interventions to the poor-performing schools."

There's little time to do all of this. If legislation passes, the new district would launch with the start of the 2016-17 school year.

Buy Photo

Alycia Meriweather, 42, of Detroit is the new interim superintendent of Detroit Public Schools.(Photo: Regina H. Boone, Detroit Free Press)

"I would argue that Detroit Public Schools has not been given the opportunity to truly turn ourselves around," Meriweather said. "We've changed leadership multiple times in the last six years ... and that's had an impact on our ability to implement change, all the way through."

She said it can take eight to 10 years for a total district transformation. Key to that reform, she said, is putting a strong emphasis on early literacy. She also wants to explore the use of standards-based grading, a system in which students would have to demonstrate proficiency on specific course standards before receiving a passing grade.

School closings

The need to rightsize the school district might also challenge the new district's stability. Even though DPS has closed a number of schools over the decades, many schools in the district are underutilized.

The topic came up at a recent legislative hearing, when a lawmaker questioned reports that as many as 20 DPS schools would need to close.

Walsh said last week that 20 “is a reasonable number.”

Closing schools can be a self-fulfilling prophecy, Griffith said.

"When you close schools, you're pushing people to go to a local charter school," he said.

But both Walsh and Allen believe that scenario can be mitigated if the district doesn't cut parents and the community out of the decision-making process.

“They can’t go into a room … and come out with a secret plan and then tell people ‘this is what’s going on.’ They have to open this process up with transparency,” Allen said. “Let people in communities in Detroit have some say in what school closings might look like.”

Walsh said the new school board will be in the best position to make decisions about school closings.

“It’ll be helpful that there’s an elected board in place that can listen to and respond to community input," he said. "That’ll make a big difference.”

Visions for a new DPS

One of the biggest challenges may be trying to meet the demands of parents and teachers who will see the blank slate of a new DPS as a way to restore programs that have been cut, increase teacher pay and ensure DPS students are getting an education comparable to their peers in suburban districts.

In 2009, DPS teachers agreed to loan the district $10,000 over two years, though the program ended early and they ended up loaning about $9,000. The money has to be given back when teachers exit the district. There have been no across-the-board salary increases for teachers in recent years.

Walsh said some of the $200 million in transition costs could be used to negotiate "different wages, better wages for the employee base." It also could be used to hire teachers to fill vacancies. Michelle Zdrodowski, spokeswoman for Detroit Public Schools, said there are about 180 vacancies, including teachers, counselors and social workers.

Buy Photo

Ivy Bailey, DFT, Interim speaks to the media during a Press conference to announced that the Detroit Federation of teachers along with American Federation of Teachers sues Detroit Public Schools, Emergency Manager, over school conditions, on Thursday, Jan. 28, 2016.(Photo: Jessica J. Trevino/Detroit Free Press.)

Ivy Bailey, interim president of the Detroit Federation of Teachers, said reducing class sizes, fixing building problems, addressing the teacher shortages and restoring programs such as art, music and gym top her list of what she would like to see for the new Detroit school district.

Most high schools, she said, have physical education classes and some have art. But, "they don't all have music. Every school should have art, P.E. and music. Everyone is so overwhelmed. The students aren't getting a break, the teachers aren't getting a break. There's no outlet."

That's particularly a problem at the elementary level. Bailey said many elementary schools don't have art, music or P.E. To make up for it, regular classroom teachers take on art instruction inside their own classrooms, or they'll take the kids out on the playground or the gym to play.

Bailey said Spain Elementary-Middle School, where she used to teach and which was in the news earlier this year for mold and other building problems, once had a strong band program. But it disappeared amid funding cuts.

“I would love to see a lot of that come back,” she said.

Overall, improving academic achievement will be key to restoring the district’s reputation, she said.

“We have to focus on our academics … A lot of this, I believe, can be solved if all the people who are involved sit down and come up with a clear plan for what we want Detroit Public Schools to look like,” she said.

Walsh agreed that the new DPS will need to undergo significant change.

"Having more money for the classroom instead of debt service will be a tremendous opportunity for the district to make those changes," Walsh said.

Education experts offered these thoughts for the future of the new DPS district:

• Tim Knowles, chairman of the Urban Education Institute at the University of Chicago:

Knowles recommends teachers routinely be given data on their freshmen students, showing who's on track to pass all their core academic courses, who's at risk — and then provide interventions accordingly. He said that information is a better predictor of success than race, family income, neighborhood or prior academic achievement.

Shields said that to truly improve the district academically, there needs to be a focus on eliminating what she calls "deficit thinking" — the kind of thinking that suggests poor, urban kids can't learn and their parents don't care. That, she said, is more vital than which math or reading program schools should use.

• Kendra Hearn, associate professor of teacher education at the University of Michigan:

Hearn said the district needs to engage parents in their children's education and ensure schools have wraparound services — services that address all of the social, emotional and health needs of a student, and often their family.Some schools already do this, but it's not widespread across all Detroit schools. Providing those types of services within the school building makes it easier for students and their families to access.

• David Arsen, professor of education policy at Michigan State University:

Arsen said there needs to be an even bigger investment in early childhood programs in Detroit. And just as important, he said, there needs to be more coordination of the various programs that exist in the city.

• Tonya Allen, president and CEO of the Skillman Foundation and Hearn:

They pointed to the need to improve the morale of teachers, and to have them be actively involved in the process of transforming the district.